A Walk on the Wild Side

Oh My, Animal Prints

Lions, tigers and bears, oh my!  Animal prints on my saree? Why not, I have car mats in leopard! Okay, I digress, well, I haven't come across any lion or bear fur sarees-okay, I have seen sarees with images of lions, but I don't want the king of the jungle plastered on my pallu. Nevertheless, tigers, leopards, and zebra prints, oh yes, they are plentiful.  Of course, Masaba Gupta caused a stir with her spotted cow prints! So, it looks like it's not going to be too hard to score an animal print saree.

Every Cloud Has

A Silver Lining

It's been grey clouds and rainy around here, which makes for moody people. But, the grey clouds got me thinking about grey sarees ... Why?  Well, sarees make me happy and right now I need a little dose of happiness. Now, if you've read these posts, you'll know I'm not a fan of white clothes, and love just about any colour but white.  So, back to the story.  I started out looking for grey sarees, but wasn't too impressed with what is out there-sure there were some choices out there, but came up empty handed. However, type the word silver  and (drum roll please) ...  bang, a saree feast!

I'm really digging the silver sarees with gold embroidery, it looks so delicate and elegant, which is something I am so not!  But a girl can dream and add to her saree wardrobe.

By the way, have a great weekend!

Not the best picture of Deepika Padukone,
but the saree is so beautiful!

Not too crazy about the headpiece,
but the silver and gold combo has such a wow factor!

Except for the bracelet, this is a wonderful outfit.

Handlooms

Handmade In India 

I'm gonna make a bold statement here: Handlooms are the soul of India.  That's a quite a statement to make, but look at the facts:  the industry is intertwined into India's rich (understatement) identity and history; Mahatma Ghandi's "khadi movement" in protest of British rule; for goodness' sake, the loom is on India's flag; and, don't forget the national dress of India's women: the ubiquitous saree-we're talking about more than 4,000 years of history, folks.

That's pretty amazing, and saying a lot because Africa, for example,  really doesn't produce it's own cloth (manufactured in other countries for the most part). Yes, there is Kente and Mud cloths, but for those bright, and wild prints thank another country.

Yet, I digress.  Of course,  I can go on and on about handlooms but there is so much information out there about the handloom industry. But, it is said it's a "dying" art.  Sure, handlooms are still being used (thank goodness for initiatives by co-ops, guilds, the government and designers), but powerlooms are crowding them out.  This is art that cannot nor should die, and I don't think that will ever happen. Why, because handlooms is an integral part of the culture.

I'm not Indian but I respect, admire, appreciate and purchase handlooms.  To be honest, there is something personal about an actual person(s) dedicating time to design and create a saree or textile. Sure, I do admit to having some powerloom sarees, but that's the past-handlooms for now on.

The Lure of Gold

Golden Saree Dreams

We've touched on just about every color for a "fusion" bride but there is one color that escaped our attention: gold. What!  Are we crazy? How can we forget gold! Let's be honest here for a moment: gold and India goes hand in hand-and you cannot have a wedding without gold, no matter how rich or poor you are. FACT!

Let's look at a few of the great qualities of a gold saree:  it warms up the palest of skin, and smolder  on luscious dark skin (the darker the better, we might add). And you always look regal. You can't go wrong with gold.

And for a wedding, oh, oh, oh, talk about an entrance.  The bride will look like more than a million.  Don't forget that a bridal saree in Kerala is a beautiful combination of white/unbleached cotton and gold. Now, if the Kerala saree doesn't tickle your fancy (What's wrong with you!) then turn to the mesmerizing designs of Tarun Tahiliani-the master of the golden weave.

Silk Plus Cotton Equals Sico

The Best of Both Worlds

Even if you even casually check out this blog, one would realize there is a profound love of  cotton sarees; however, cotton sarees don't care too much for certain body types (call it extra-fluffy).  It's a dilemma of soap opera magnitude:girl desperately loves cotton,  but mr. georgette loves her body.  cotton doesn't need to much to stay in place, but if georgette isn't properly attended to, goes all over the place. Cotton keeps girl cool in summer and warm in winter, but georgette, well ...

In a nod to Vera de Milo (throwback thursday), "what's a girl to do?"

The answer is simple, actually there are two answers but we're going to focus on one, stay with me here: How about a sico (silk and cotton blend) saree.

Sico sarees are the best of both worlds: luster of silk, versatility of cotton, and don't carry the huge price tag of pure silk. Let's not forget triple bonus points for handlooms.

Well, we need to find out if sico is really worth its praise. In a few weeks (next payday to be exact) we're going to purchase a sico saree to see if it's worth the hype, and add it to the wardrobe. And we might add, may purchase through Unnati Silks (shameless name dropping).  We will keep you posted. In the meantime, enjoy the Sico sarees!

we really like this chanderi sico from Unnati Silks

and we like this blue Chanderi saree also from Unnati Silks